First Transgender Footballer to Play in AFL

14th February 2018

The Australian Football League (AFL) will allow a transgender footballer to play women's football for the first time in its history.

Hannah Mouncey, 28, who previously played 22 games with the Australian men's national handball team before she began her gender transition in 2015, hopes to take to the field in the state of Victoria this season.

The decision by the AFL means Hannah can now participate in any of its affiliated state leagues during the 2018 season. In an AFL statement, the League said it "strongly encourages" an inclusive policy among trans players at the community level, with the national body yet to finalise its gender diversity policy.

In a statement uploaded to Hannah Mouncey’s Twitter account, she expressed thanks to her supporters - but not the AFL itself. "I think it would be highly inappropriate for me to thank the AFL for allowing me to do something open to every other Australian, which the science and research has supported all along," she said.